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Friend: Jackson "Really Wanted to Be a Filmmaker"
Today 7:26 AM PDT by Lindsay Miller
Michael Jackson has always been known for headlining innovative music videos like Thriller. But now we're learning he also had aspirations of being a big-screen filmmaker.
Bryan Michael Stoller, a Los Angeles-based director and producer, tells E! News that his decades-long friendship with the late King of Pop was fueled by their shared love of movies and that the latter one day hoped to tap his inner Coppola.
"Michael really wanted to be a filmmaker and direct a feature film," Stoller said.
Stoller first met Michael in 1985 after he produced a spoof on his infamous Pepsi commercial. Stoller says the singer personally called him to tell him he was a fan of the video and that they bonded over their interest in films.
In later years, Jackson invited him to Neverland Ranch to give private tutoring sessions to his eldest two children, Prince and Paris.
"He'd set up a makeshift classroom, and he wanted me to mentor the kids on filmmaking," Stoller recalled. "We were talking about how animation was done, scripts, screenplays. He was totally into that."
Stoller, who is also the author of Filmmaking for Dummies, said he spent much time at Neverland Ranch and Las Vegas over the years, referring to it as "his second home." There, he taught the Jackson kids about cameras and writing for the screen.
"I would tutor them at the ranch, and the kids always had a teacher there," said Stoller, adding that he was always impressed by the intelligence of Jackson's children.
"Paris—even when she was just 4 or 5—she would just stare me down," he noted. "I said to her once, 'Paris, how old are you?' and she said, 'Four.' I said, 'When are you turning 5?' and she said, 'On my birthday, silly.'"
Jackson and Stoller also worked together, bouncing around ideas about possible film projects. Jackson even appeared in Stoller's 2004 spoof film Miss Castaway & The Island Girls as "Agent M.J."
At one point, they discussed a remake of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Eventually, however, they decided to option and adapt a book called They Cage the Animals at Night, about an abandoned and abused foster boy. (One of Jackson's favorite films was Oliver, and many have drawn comparisons between the two stories.)
Stoller said they teamed with Icon Productions—Mel Gibson's company—to finance the film, with Michael set to direct. That deal was widely reported on in 2002, but when Jackson's 2005 trial happened, the film fell apart.
Stoller also remarked that he never saw the Moonwalker use drugs and was skeptical about some of the people who have stepped forward to say otherwise.
"A lot of these people—I never saw them," Stoller said. "I never saw anything that would lead me to believe he did [drugs]. He did have back problems and he complained about his back. I even recommended he get a memory-foam mattress, which he did, and I think it helped."
It was about two months ago, when Jackson was preparing for his highly anticipated O2 concert series, that Stoller last saw his friend.
"It was a little shocking, because he was so frail," Stoller said. "I think he was excited about [the concerts]—but I know he was concerned. He initially thought there would just be 10 shows."
Stoller said he's considered trying to revive the They Cage the Animals at Night project in Jackson's memory.
Today 7:26 AM PDT by Lindsay Miller
Michael Jackson has always been known for headlining innovative music videos like Thriller. But now we're learning he also had aspirations of being a big-screen filmmaker.
Bryan Michael Stoller, a Los Angeles-based director and producer, tells E! News that his decades-long friendship with the late King of Pop was fueled by their shared love of movies and that the latter one day hoped to tap his inner Coppola.
"Michael really wanted to be a filmmaker and direct a feature film," Stoller said.
Stoller first met Michael in 1985 after he produced a spoof on his infamous Pepsi commercial. Stoller says the singer personally called him to tell him he was a fan of the video and that they bonded over their interest in films.
In later years, Jackson invited him to Neverland Ranch to give private tutoring sessions to his eldest two children, Prince and Paris.
"He'd set up a makeshift classroom, and he wanted me to mentor the kids on filmmaking," Stoller recalled. "We were talking about how animation was done, scripts, screenplays. He was totally into that."
Stoller, who is also the author of Filmmaking for Dummies, said he spent much time at Neverland Ranch and Las Vegas over the years, referring to it as "his second home." There, he taught the Jackson kids about cameras and writing for the screen.
"I would tutor them at the ranch, and the kids always had a teacher there," said Stoller, adding that he was always impressed by the intelligence of Jackson's children.
"Paris—even when she was just 4 or 5—she would just stare me down," he noted. "I said to her once, 'Paris, how old are you?' and she said, 'Four.' I said, 'When are you turning 5?' and she said, 'On my birthday, silly.'"
Jackson and Stoller also worked together, bouncing around ideas about possible film projects. Jackson even appeared in Stoller's 2004 spoof film Miss Castaway & The Island Girls as "Agent M.J."
At one point, they discussed a remake of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Eventually, however, they decided to option and adapt a book called They Cage the Animals at Night, about an abandoned and abused foster boy. (One of Jackson's favorite films was Oliver, and many have drawn comparisons between the two stories.)
Stoller said they teamed with Icon Productions—Mel Gibson's company—to finance the film, with Michael set to direct. That deal was widely reported on in 2002, but when Jackson's 2005 trial happened, the film fell apart.
Stoller also remarked that he never saw the Moonwalker use drugs and was skeptical about some of the people who have stepped forward to say otherwise.
"A lot of these people—I never saw them," Stoller said. "I never saw anything that would lead me to believe he did [drugs]. He did have back problems and he complained about his back. I even recommended he get a memory-foam mattress, which he did, and I think it helped."
It was about two months ago, when Jackson was preparing for his highly anticipated O2 concert series, that Stoller last saw his friend.
"It was a little shocking, because he was so frail," Stoller said. "I think he was excited about [the concerts]—but I know he was concerned. He initially thought there would just be 10 shows."
Stoller said he's considered trying to revive the They Cage the Animals at Night project in Jackson's memory.